8 Female Photographers To Watch

March 8 is International Women’s Day – a day that’s not only about promoting equal rights, but also about shining a spotlight on the achievements of women everywhere.

So what better time to highlight some of the photography world’s up and coming female talent?

If we think about what it takes to be a great photographer, the answers can be many and varied. Born talent, drive, a sense of adventure, an ability to connect with a subject or hit the shutter at just the right moment…

These qualities, of course, transcend gender and culture. But sometimes those who are at risk of being overlooked can benefit from being brought into the spotlight. That’s what we’re aiming to achieve this International Women’s Day.

So without further ado, here are 8 young female photographers to watch in 2020.

1. Kay Dargen

Still in her early twenties, Kay Dargen has already proved herself a master in the melding of fantasy and reality. To sum up her work in a word? Awesome.

Kay’s photography projects not only require an active imagination but also the impressive digital retouching skills to bring her visions to life.

She credits her somewhat dreary surroundings of Fargo, North Dakota, for her creative spark.

“Being from a region of infamously underwhelming scenery, I’ve embraced my fascination with color to create images that induce nostalgia and wonder,” she told Shotkit when we featured her work recently.

Definitely a young lady to watch, you can follow her on Instagram here.

Born in Taiwan in 1992, Valerie Chiang started out at a conservatory studying piano performance. Seems it wasn’t her true calling: after two years she transferred to film and TV studies and has now carved out a niche for herself as a photographer in New York.

“It’s tough to believe she’s only a few years on the scene,” said W Magazine, recently naming her as one of 10 new fashion photographers to follow.

With a talent for capturing beautiful and natural black and white portraits, this rising star can already be found snapping celebrities for New Yorker magazine as well as fashion features for the likes of Vogue, WWD and ELLE Magazine.

Los Angeles based photographer Allison Zaucha captures the raw and the real in her work as a photojournalist.

Her photos are the kind that tell stories, convey emotions, and put the viewer right there in the moment. It’s this quality that’s lead her to be published in Vanity Fair, The New York Times, Forbes, Wall Street Journal and many more.

In 2018 she was nominated for the PDN / Photo District News 30: New and Emerging Photographers to Watch. This year she landed on the ARTPIL 30 under 30 list of women photographers.

Well deserved: she’s definitely one of the female photographers to watch right now in the photojournalism space.

Photography for her is a loom on which stories of people and cultures are woven together. As a photojournalist, she captures everyday life in all its grittiness and beauty, and she does so with a distinctly human touch.

Her Women Stories concept chronicles subjects from women’s rights to the lives of female miners and farmers in Mexico, all in sequences of images that speak more deeply than any words.

In 2019, she was one of the winners of Reuters Photojournalists Grants.

Despite her young age (she’s still in her early twenties) Rhea Dillon has already made quite a mark.

Granted, she’s much more than a photographer – she’s a visual artist who also uses film, poetry and writing to tell personal stories that largely revolve around matters of colour and race.

She was chosen as one of 25 emerging international photographers to be featured in the Red Hook Labs annual summer group show in New York, and was ranked number 60 in the Dazed 100 list for 2019 – a list that charts the rise of those defining popular culture in the present moment.

We can’t help but agree – keep your eye on this female photographer in 2020 and beyond.

8. Olivia Bee

Granted, Olivia Bee has been building up her photographer profile for some time. In fact, she’s hopped and skipped from list to list over the last few years – working her way from Flickr’s 20 under 20 to Forbes’ 30 under 30, along with countless other awards and exhibitions.

She’s also worked up a considerable social media following, like the 100k-plus Instagram fans who devour the dreamy and nostalgic, yet somehow raw and emotive, imagery she produces.

Olivia’s work spans from fashion to portraiture to commercial, and she has a long list of renowned publications and clients to her name.

With her star continuing to rise, we think she’s well worth keeping an eye on as a female photographer to watch.